It is my great pleasure to be here this morning to officiate at the opening of the Voter Services Centre here in Rakiraki on behalf of the Chairperson.

Unfortunately, the Chairperson had to attend to some urgent work in Suva and could not be here today. He sends his apologies.

Ladies and Gentlemen, the Voter Services Centre we will open today will be the 7th around the country. We already have such Centres in Nausori, Suva, Savusavu, Nadi, Labasa and Lautoka.

As we all know, this is an election year and as such the Electoral Commission has decided to ensure we expand throughout key centres in Fiji to facilitate voter services.

From today, at this Centre, you can register as a new voter if you not already registered, you can verify your voter details, make changes to your personal details or even get a replacement card.

We already have 624,404 persons on the voter list for 2018 Election. The Rakiraki Centre will cover 20,177 voters at the minimum. There are 95 polling venues in the Rakiraki area office for FEO.

Under the 2013 Constitution, the whole country is a single Constituency. This means there is no requirement to divide Fijians based on ethnicity or race when they come to vote.

The Multinational Observers for 2014 found this to be a positive element for Fiji. That is why we do not ask you about your race or ethnicity when you register. It is irrelevant information as far as the electoral system is concerned.